Shipping structure and door therefor



SHIPPING STRUCTURE AND DOOR THEREFOR Filed April 6, 1933 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 I Q-J.

-//v1//\/7'o/e5- CoA/eeo E. VEGEEA/ MAP/QED. ISEHUCHHMP 59/52/54 Meme/W3 March 1936- c. R. VEGREN ET AL SHIPPING STRUCTURE AND DOOR THEREFOR Y3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 6, 1933 mm Qm \m n *m 1 Wm mm mm 7 1) .8 mm w Nu I "/NVENTOES CONE/9O E Mse/eE/v MLFEE/J H BEFJUCHHMP 5 GH /e054, MHOLHA/O 75 l L flTTLQ March 24, 1936. c EN r AL 2,035,207

SHIPPING STRUCTURE AND- booR THEREFOR Filed April 6, 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 4 A V xwx GHBEIEL. Mnamg V W Patented Mar. 24, 1936 PATENT OFF-ICE SHIPPING smuo'runnlm noon.

THEREFOR Conrad R. Vegren, Wilfred A. Beauchamp,-and

Gabriel Madland, Chicago, Ill

-, assi s; y

mesne assignments, to The Youngstown Steel Door Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation.

' of Ohio Application April 6, 1933, Serial No. 664,696 '12 Claims. (01. Isa-4s) This invention relates to shipping structures and the doors therefor and concerns itself primarily with those structures utilized for less than carload shipments.

It is an object of this invention to provide shipping structures ,or containers having swinging doors constructed and arranged relative to said structures so as to cover the joints between said doors andsaid structures.

A further object is to provide swinging shipping container doors which shall, in closed position, lie flush with said containers and which include reinforcing members capable of sealing the joints between said doors and containers. I

A further object is to provide swinging ship ping container doors having a reinforcing frame which is extended so as to abut the containers to.limit closing movement of said doors.

A further object is to provide shipping struc-. 'tures-having swinging doors and means carried by said structures adapted to impart initial opening and final closing movements to said doors.

A further object is to provide shipping structures having swinging doors and means carried by said structuresincluding a, finger actuated to operative position by closing movement of the door to impart initial opening and final closing movements thereto.

Other objects will become clear as the description of the invention proceeds.

r In the drawings forming part of this specificaion,

Figure l is an elevation of a container provided with a swinging door and means for imparting movement thereto;

Figure 2 is a horizontal section taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1; a

Figure 3 is a vertical section taken on line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a vertical section taken on line 44 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a vertical section similar to Figure 4, showing a modified construction adjacent the top of the door; L

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary elevation of a portion of the operating means for the door;

Figure 7 is a horizontal section taken on line 1-1 ofFigureB 1 Figure 8 is a view similar to Figln'e 6- showing a modified construction; and

Figure 9 is a horizontal section taken ,on line 9-9 of Figure 8.

Refen'ing tosaid drawings numeral 40 designates as a whole a shipping container having a wall ll provided with a door opening 12 adapted to be closed by means of a swinging door l3. The door opening. I2 is preferablyprovided by means of a plurality of relatively 5 and lower margins of said door opening, the

member l9 being secured to themetallic sheathing l6 by means of rivets as indicated at 2|. The bottom member 20 in the door opening 15 is overlapped by means of a metallic plate 22 which is extended inwardly of the structure or container Ill and secured to the floor 23 thereof as shown in Figure 3 of the drawings to provide a threshold plate for said door. Each of 20 the members defining the door opening is provided with a flange directed toward said opening and a flange extending transversely relative thereto in order to provide a reentrant angle within which filler members 24, 25, 26 and '21 are secured. The door defining member l4, additionally, has one leg 28 of an angle member 29' secured thereto, the other leg 30 of said member, extending toward said opening and being secured to the metallic sheathing it of the container. The container may be reinforced by means of 'the substantially flanged channel shaped members 31 and 32. Furthermore, where it is desired that the bottom of the container. be positioned above the supporting sur- 35 face legs 33 may be secured to the container for this purpose. Eyes 34 and 35- may be secured adjacent the upper corners of the container in order tofacilitate lifting of the containers by means of cranes. 40

The door l3 which may beutilized to close the door opening l2 comprises a metallic panel 3l and a metallic frame 38 formed preferably of relatively sturdy angular members secured to the vertical and horizontal margins of the me- 45 tallic panel. Each of the angular members, as

' clearly shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4, is provided with a flangeexpendlng substantially parallel to the panel by which said members are secured thereto; and a flange extending transversely to said panel. The frame member 39 is provided with the flange 40 which preferably extends outwardly beyond the metallic panel Iland'is de-' inner face of the flange 30 provided on the angle member 28. The vertically positioned frame member 42 is provided with the flange 43 which extends outwardly beyond the corresponding margin of the panel and which is bent outwardly as indicated at 44 in order to overlap the filler member 25 in the closed position of the door while at the same time maintaining the metallic panel substantially flush with the sheathing l6 of the container. The angular frame member 45 secured to the upper margin of the panel 31 is provided with a flange 48 which preferably stops short of the upper edge of the panel. By this construction the upper margin of the panel 31 may be bent inwardly as indicated at 41 to prevent entrance of the elements into the con tainer over the upperedge of the door. The bottom angular frame member 48 is provided with a flange 49 extending beyond the lower margin of the panel 31 and offset outwardly as indicated at 50 so that it overlaps the metallic plate 22 secured to the angular member 28. It will be apparent from the relationship of the angular members 39, 42 and 48 of the door rein forcing frame with the frame constituting the door opening that the former will effectively seal the vertical and lower margins of the latter frame. the door is aided by means of the plate member 5| secured to the door and maintained in spaced relation thereto by means of a plurality of spaced washers 53. The plate member 5| in the closed position of the door is adapted to engage the flller 21 secured to the angular member l9. For further weatherprooflng protection of the upper margin of the door a drip plate 54 secured to the metallic sheathing l6 and the member 19 may be utilized. The lower edge of the door may, if desired, be further weatherproofed by means of Weatherstripping 55 secured to the inner face of the door as indicated at 58.

It will be clear from Figures 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings that the door l3 may be provided with an inner ,wooden frame construction 51 adapted to enclose the reinforcing frame of the door. This frame 51, in addition to the lower weather strip 55, is provided uponits vertical side edges with the weatherstrips 58 and 59, while the portion of the wooden frame member 51 at the top of the door is adapted to engage the Weatherstrip carried by the wooden filler 21. It is apparent that by the use of the inner wooden frame 51 the door I3 is readily adapted for use with a refrigerating container and that it may, as well, be utilized as a swinging door of a refrigerator car or the like.

Mechanism is employed to effectively force the door into its opening and into engagement with the door frame so as to insure a tight sealing engagement between the edges of said door and said door frame and to force said door out of its opening in the opening movement thereof. This mechanism in the form illustrated in Figures l, 2, 6 and 7 preferably takes the form of a vertical bar 8| journaled in bearings 82, 83 and 64 secured to the container adjacent one edge of the door opening. A closing finger 65 is fastened adjacent each end of the vertical bar 6| so as to rotate with said bar; A lever 66 having a pivoted handle portion 81 is fixedly secured to said bar intermediate the ends thereof for imparting rotation to said bar. The end of the lever 66 which is secured to the bar is bifurcated as indicated at 88. An opening finger 69 is mounted upon said bar for rotation relative The sealing engagement at the top of thereto intermediate the bifurcations of the lever. The opening finger 89 is provided with a cylindrical portion 10, through which the bar 8| loosely extends, and a flange 1| the outer end of which is turned toward the door as indicated at 12. A lug 13 preferably integral with the cylindrical portion 10 of the opening finger extends from said cylindrical portion. It will be observed from Figure 2 of the drawings that the portion 12 of the flange1 I provided on the opening finger 89 lies inwardly of the door in the closed position of the latter and for this purpose the flller member 25 and the sheathing 16 are coped as indicated at 14 and 15. It will be further apparent from this flgure that in the closed position of the door the operating handle 61 of the lever 68 may cooperate with a keeper 16 secured to the door through the medium of a pin 11 to lock the door in its closed position.

A modified form of the mechanism above described is illustrated in Figures 8 and 9 of the drawings. 18 provided with a pivoted operating handle 19 which is adapted to coact with the keeper 16 and the pin 11 to lock the door in its closed position. The lever 18 is provided with a shoulder 88 adapted, during the operation of the lever to impart rotation to the bar 6|, to engage the shoulder 8lformed on the opening finger 82.

The opening finger 82 is loosely mounted upon the bar 6| and is provided with the shoulder 83 adapted to coact with a shoulder 84 provided on the bearing member 85 secured to the container. With this modified mechanism, moreover, coping of the wooden filler 25 and the metallic sheathing I6 is avoided. There is secured'to the door l3 a bracket 88 having a flange 81 spaced outwardly from the adjacent margin of the door. A flange 88 which, in the instant embodiment is shown to be straight, is provided on the opening finger 82 and in the closed position of the door is disposed between the flange 81 and the adjacent margin of the door. The flange 43 of the angular member 42 secured to said margin of the door is coped as indicated at 89.

In Figure 5 of the drawings there is illustrated a modified construction for weatherprooflng the upper edge of the door. In this construction an angular reinforcing frame member 90 is utilized and is provided with a flange 9| extending upwardly beyond the panel 31 of the door and offset as indicated at 92 to engage the wooden filler 21. With this construction there may be utilized a sealing member 93 secured to the upper margin of the door and spaced therefrom by means of the disks 94. The upper margin of the sealing member is bent over to provide a flange 95 positioned in overlapping relationship to the flange 96 formed on the. drip plate 54. By this arrangement direct entry of the elements into the container over the upper edge of the door is avoided.

It is apparent from the foregoing description fectively sealed around its margins so as to prevent entry of the elements into the container. The operation of the operating mechanism utilized with the door and its effectiveness in bringing the door into sealing engagement with the container .and for releasing said door from 'said engagement will be manifest. With either form of mechanism it will be apparent that by releaseof the operating handle of the mechanism from the keeper provided on the door and the rotation of the lever in a counterclockwise The lever 88 is replaced by the lever.

, that the door'in its closed position will be ef- 6 their engagement with the door.

openingflnger andv engagement of the inturned portion 12 of the flange H with the door so as to force the door outwardly toward open position. Rotation of the lever in this wise may be continued until the projection I3 abuts the intermediate bearing 63. This projection is so arranged as to maintain the inturned-portion 12 of the flange H in such position regardless of the angular displacement of the opening finger upon the bar 6| that said portion will always be engaged by the free edge ofthe door in the closing movement thereof. Similarly, in the modification shown in Figure 8 of the drawings, counterclockwise rotation will be imparted to the opening finger 82 by the engagement between.

the shoulders 80 and 8| and such rotation will be limited by the engagement between the shoulders 83 and 86. In this modification, also,'as illustrated in Figure 9 of the drawings, engagement between the flange 81 of the bracket 86.

secured to the door and the flange 88 of the opening finger is insured in the swinging movement of the door to closed position. To permit such engagement the cope 89 is formed in the flange 63. In the closing movement of the door actuation of the lever will bring about engagement between the closing fingers and wall plates 9? whereby positive force is exerted upon said door through such actuation to force said door into tight engagement with the door frame and the container.

It is apparent that numerous changes and modifications in the details of the invention will be clear to those skilled in the art. It is intended, therefore, that all such modifications and changes be comprehended within this invention, which is to be limited only by the scope of the claims appended hereto.

We claim:

1. In a shipping container, 9. wall having a door opening, a door hinged to said wall for closing said opening, said door comprising a metallic panel lying substantially in the plane of said wall in the closed position of the door and; relatively sturdy angular members havingflan'ges secured to the marginal portions of said panel and flanges extending transversely thereto, said first mentioned flanges being deformed to lie in overlapping relationship with said wall around the perimeter of said opening.

2. In a shipping container; a wall having a door opening, a door hinged to said wall for closing said opening, said door comprising a metallic panel and relatively sturdy angular members having flanges secured to the marginal portions of said panel and flanges extending transversely thereto, all of said first mentioned flanges I portions of said panel and flanges extending upon said structure adjacent an edge of said opening, a closing finger for said door fixedly secured to said bar adjacent each end thereof and rotatable therewith, an opening finger for said door mounted upon saidbar for rotation relative thereto and means adapted to impart rotation to said bar and to engage said opening finger for the purpose set forth.

5. In a shipping structure, a wall, a door hinged to said wall for closing an opening provided therein, a vertical bar rotatably mounted upon said structure adjacent an edge of said opening, a closing finger for said door mounted upon said bar adjacent each end thereof, an opening finger mounted upon said bar intermediate the ends thereof, said fingers being arranged out of phase with relation to the angular displacement of said bar.

6. In a shipping structure, a wall, a door hinged to said wall for closing an opening provided therein, a vertical bar rotatably mounted upon said structure adjacent an edge of said opening, a closing finger for said door fixedly secured tosaid bar adjacent each end thereof and rotatable therewith, an operating lever having a bifurcated end secured to said bar intermediate the ends thereof and an opening finger mounted upon said bar for rotation relative thereto, said latter finger being disposed between the bifurcations at said end of said lever and. adapted for engagement by said lever to impart opening movement to said door.

7. In a shipping structure, a wall, a doora closing fingerfor saiddoor fixedly secured to said bar adjacent each end thereof for rotation therewith, an opening finger for said door mounted upon said bar for rotation relative thereto and a lever for imparting rotation to said bar, said lever and said opening finger tive engagement to limit the, rotation of said opening finger.

8. In a shipping structure, a wall, a door hinged to said wall for closing an opening provided therein, the free vertical edge of said door in the closed position thereof overlapping thefadjacent portion of said wall, a bracket secured to said wall adjacent said edge, a bracket secured to said door adjacent said edge, a portion of said bracket lying in spaced relation to said edge,

an opening finger rotatably mounted upon said portion of said wall disposed between said edge of said door and said portion of the bracket, means for imparting rotation to said finger to open said door and means for limiting said rotation whereby said bracket will engage said finger in the swinging movement of said door to closed position to properly dispose said finger in door opening position, said edge being coped adjacent said bracket to obtain said engagement.

9. In a shipping structure, a wall, a door hinged to said wall for closing an opening provided therein, a vertical bar rotatably mounted finger being disposed between the bifurcations at said end of the lever and adapted for engagement by said lever to impart opening movement to said door.

10. In a shipping structure, a wall, a door hinged to said wall for closing an opening provided therein, a vertical bar, means including a bearing secured to said wall intermediate the ends of said bar for rotatably securing said bar upon said wall adjacent an edge of said opening, an opening finger for said door mounted upon said bar for rotation relative thereto and a lever for imparting rotation to said bar, said lever and said opening finger having cooperative engagement at a predetermined point in the' movement of said lever to impart rotation to said opening fingerand said latter finger and said bearing having cooperative engagement to limit the rotation of said opening finger.

11. In a shipping container, a wall having a door opening, a door hinged to said wall for closing said opening, said door comprising a metallic panel lying substantially in the plane of said wall in the closed position of the door and metallic frame members formed of relatively sturdy angular sections having flanges secured to the inside of said panel upon marginal portions thereof, said flanges extending outwardly beyond the corresponding margins of said panel for overlapping engagement with said container adjacent to said opening.

12. In a shipping container, a wall having a door opening, a door hinged to said wall for closing said opening, said door comprising a metallic panel lying substantially in the plane of said wall in the closed position of the door and metallic frame members formed of relatively sturdy angular sections having flanges secured to the inside of said panel upon marginal portions thereof, said flanges extending substantially parallel to said panel for overlapping engagement with said container adjacent said opening.

' CONRAD R. VEGREN.

WILF'RED A. BEAUCHAMP. GABRIEL MADLAND. 

